Oregon now lets people pump their own gas - and some Oregonians are freaking out

Chris WellerJan 3, 2018, 10.22 PM

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Don Ryan/AP ImagesDon Ryan/AP Images

A law passed in 2017 permitting Oregon residents to pump their own gas has now taken effect.

Not at all residents took the news well on social media.

For decades, Oregon and New Jersey were the only two states where people didn't have to pump their own gas.

But a new law that was passed in 2017 by Gov. Kate Brown has taken effect, and it requires people to self-serve at the pumps.

The adjustment has some Oregonians freaking out.

A December 29 Facebook post from local CBS station KTVL, in Medford, Oregon, alerted locals to the new law, which took effect January 1. A handful of people quickly announced their displeasure with the change.

As the internet is wont to do, many more people jumped on the Facebook dogpile to make fun of the Oregonians who resented the new law.

The new law comes more than 65 years after Oregon successfully put laws on the books forbidding residents from filling up their own tanks. It was the second state after New Jersey, the only other state to have such a law, which was enacted in 1949.

Both states initially passed the laws after heavy lobbying from service station owners. People who support the ban generally argue the law creates jobs and increases safety.

Critics, especially those from the 48 states where fill-ups are self-serviced, claim pumping gas is perfectly safe, doesn't waste time, and doesn't make gas any cheaper.